


The Best Way to My Heart

by Foreveracumberbitch



Category: Armie Hammer - Fandom
Genre: AU, Bakery, Eventual Smut, F/M, First Kiss, Loss of Virginity, Romance, Seattle, rainy day
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-03-10
Updated: 2016-04-02
Packaged: 2018-05-25 21:00:54
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 4,217
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6209968
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Foreveracumberbitch/pseuds/Foreveracumberbitch
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Armie Hammer stumbles into a bakery on a blustery, rainy day in Seattle. There, he would meet Eva Storm, a young woman with a big secret.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> First time I posted this, it was deleted, so here we go again! Wrote it without his wife or daughter, because I wish the Hammers all the best in life, and don't want to write about infidelity. A lot of this draws on my own experience with baking (I love to bake, do it all the time, want to do it professionally someday), and some of it comes from TV shows (Cake Boss fans, gimme a shoutout!) :) Hope you all enjoy!

“My God, it’s really coming down out there!” Eva Storm flung her raincoat off with a _swoosh_ , and watched as her assistant jumped back to avoid the small droplets of water that flew her way.

“Eva, careful! You’re gonna get me all wet!” Annika laughed as she wiped down the counter with a towel. “It looks crazy outside. Did you get the stuff we need?”

“Oh, I got it alright.” Eva set down a 50 pound block of butter down on the metal table in the kitchen. “The only place that had this was 15 miles away. Dumb.”

Eva Storm ran a small bakery called _Sinfully Sweet_ in downtown Seattle, nestled comfortably in the heart of downtown. It was a prime spot, and the small bakery had received quite a bit of recognition from the locals in the past few years. She had arrived in Seattle 4 years ago, on dreadful circumstances, and was doing everything in her power to keep people from discovering her past. Before Seattle, she had been in Phoenix. Before Phoenix, it had been Philadelphia, Nashville, Dallas, New Orleans, Miami, Des Moines… she had lost count of how many cities she had seen, how many grungy apartments she had lived in up till now. By the time she had reached Seattle, she had cycled through 15 names, 27 apartments, and over a million emotions. She had been about to give up hope, when she met a lovely old woman named Delilah, who had hired her to work at the bakery in exchange for a place to sleep, and 3 square meals a day. Eva had been baking pretty much all her life, and she impressed Delilah so much that, by the time she had been at the bakery for 6 months, Delilah had given her full control of the place. Now, after 4 years of working there, Eva ran the show. Delilah only stopped by a few times a month to check in on how the store was doing, and _Sinfully Sweet_ had become a booming business.

“Oh, Eva, could you help me portion this butter out? We have a huge order of cupcakes that needs to go out by the end of today.” Her assistant (and partner in crime) Annika was an adorable petite thing who moved to Seattle straight from Moscow, and was Eva’s lifeline. She was only part-time, as she was also a student at the University of Washington, just a few miles away.

“Of course. How many cupcakes are we supposed to churn out today?” Eva winked as she hoisted the block onto its side and began cutting it into chunks. Contrary to Annika, she was a curvy, tall young woman, a decent size 14/16, with arms made for baking. She loved spending her free time working out, and all those hours spent doing pushups and pullups definitely came into handy during long hours at the bakery. Whisking, rolling, kneading, and carving huge blocks of butter required quite a bit of elbow grease.

“500. For a wedding.” Annika sighed, and began pulling out bags of flour and dumping them in the mixer. “They want lavender with honey buttercream.”

Eva skipped over to the computer, pulled up Spotify, and clicked “play” on her favorite playlist of all time. As Michael Bublé began float softly through the bakery, she and Annika set to work. For the next few hours, all was quiet. Neither of the girls noticed that the drizzle of rain had turned into a torrential downpour, until a loud peal of thunder echoed through the small building. Eva looked up from her buttercream, and saw that the glass panes of the front of the bakery were covered in rivulets of water pouring down from the roof of the building. A flash of lightning startled her, and another deafening crack of thunder seemed to have the ability to rattle her bones.

“Oh man, I really hope this wedding doesn’t get rained out, that would suck,” Eva commented, brushing a strand of hair out of her face. “These cupcakes deserve to be enjoyed!” She stepped back from frosting the 500 aforementioned cupcakes, and rested her hands on her hips. She stretched, and felt her spine crack deliciously.

“Oh my God, Eve, don’t do that!” Annika covered her ears, and shook her head, laughing. “You know how much I hate that!”

Eva chuckled, and bent her neck side to side, creating a hurricane of tiny popping sounds, much to Annika’s dismay. Suddenly, in the midst of all the giggling glee, the bell on the front door tinkled, and a tall man stepped into the bakery. He was absolutely _drenched._ Water ran off his clothes and created a huge puddle on the floor, and Eva could hear the telltale sniffling of someone who was unquestionably miserable. “Annika, could you run up to my apartment and grab that big purple blanket I have? And a towel!” Eva strode towards the stranger, and looked up at him. He loomed over her, sopping wet, and rubbed his face with his hands.

“Hello there.” He spoke first. “Sorry to screw up your floor, I just needed to get out of that crazy rain. I can’t believe you guys actually live in this city!” He shook his head, and plopped down onto a newly upholstered chair, droplets of rain showering Eva. “Oh, I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to get you all wet too.” He gritted his teeth as he began shivering.

“Oh my gosh, please don’t apologize. Let me get you a towel, sir.” Eva grabbed the towel that Annika handed to her, and looked at the man. At first, she thought about just draping the towel across his shoulders, but in his wet clothes, that wouldn’t have done much. As he pulled back his hood and looked up at her with glistening blue eyes, she heard Annika take a sharp breath. _Oh, Annika, so predictable. Of course, he is rather cute…_

“I would give you this towel, but I feel like that wouldn’t be much help, seeing how your clothes are,” Eva said, chuckling. “I live in a small apartment upstairs, if you would like to change into some clothes and wait out the rain, you are more than welcome to do so.” She could hear her mother now. _You’re too trusting of everyone, Eva,_ she felt her mother scold. _What if he’s an axe murderer?!_

He seemed surprised, and beamed up at her. She noted how perfect his teeth were. “Thank you, ma’am. You are too kind. I wouldn’t want to put you through any trouble though.” He pulled the towel out of her hands, and began drying off as best he could.

Eva began to protest, but Annika jumped in front of her. Literally. “Oh, Mr. Hammer, it’s no trouble at all, she’s always happy to help anyone in need. I mean… anyone who comes into the bakery. You’re not in need, I’m sure of it, why -”

“Ahem!” Eva cleared her throat. “Wait… How do you know his name?” She looked up at the tall stranger. His face seemed impossible to read. It was as if he’d gone into automatic pilot, and those once sparkling eyes seemed to have been shut off. It wasn’t until she’s asked how Annika knew his name, that he seemed to start back to life.

“You… you don’t know who I am?” His voice was astonished, and the deep silkiness of his voice made all the hair on the back of Eva’s neck stand on end.

Eva crossed her arms, now slightly irritated. “Should I?” She suddenly became aware of his immense height, and her lack of it, as he was now standing, towering over her.

“Well, no, I was just shocked, that’s all.” He ran a large hand through his blond hair, and coughed. “I’m… My name is Armie Hammer. I’m an actor, so I thought… I apologize, I was not trying to be presumptuous.” His pinks were a light shade of pink now, his eyebrows furrowed.

Eva immediately felt guilty for feeling irritated. He was just a miserable man caught in a Seattle rainstorm. “No, I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have said that. I just haven’t been that up-to-date on any media or entertainment. I’ve been rather busy. Please, head on up to my apartment, I insist that you take a hot shower and dry off while you wait out the rain. And you must have something to eat.” She smiled demurely, and led him by the arm towards the back of the bakery.

“Thank you, Ms…?” He seemed amused by the fact that she was so strong and forceful, and allowed himself to be pulled up the spiral staircase in the back of the bakery.

“Eva. Eva Storm.”


	2. Chapter Two

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Armie gets a warm meal and hot shower... Flirtiness ensues.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter two! Sorry it took so long to update. Working on chapter 3 as you're reading this.

Eva led Armie into her apartment, and showed him where the towels were kept. She led him to the bathroom, and found an old pair of her ex’s clothes. It had been a short relationship, but a painful breakup, and she had been hesitant to throw out his clothes (as stupid as that sounds). _Well,_ she thought, _at least now I have a use for them._ Suddenly, as she was lost in thought, the bathroom door opened, steamed rushed out from under the door, and Armie fracking Hammer walked out of her bathroom wearing nothing but a pair of sweats and a million beads of water all over his perfectly chiseled body. Eva could feel herself gaping, and forced herself to close her mouth and take a deep breath. She saw him grinning at her.

“I’m sorry… I just… I wasn’t…” she could feel the heat rise from her stomach all the way up to her eyebrows. “I’ll just go. I left my ex’s clothes on the chair in the bedroom, so I’ll… I’ll go. Sorry.” She kept blurting out words, and so just decided to shut up and leave the apartment. “Come downstairs for some food when you’re dressed.” Eva hurried out the front door, and she could hear him chuckling behind her.

Annika was eagerly awaiting her as she descended the spiral staircase in the back. “Well,” she pressed. “What’s happening?!”

Eva flushed again as she remembered what she’d seen upstairs. “He showered, and is… getting dressed.” She rolled her eyes as Annika squealed. “It was so awkward. I don’t wanna talk about it.”

“Oh my god did you see anything did you see anything delicious?” All of Annika’s words came out in one long breath.

“Please, Annika, stop! He’s coming down here any second for some food, I don’t wanna gossip about it anymore!” Eva was a hundred percent sure that her face was as red as the strawberries she had just picked out for a batch of strawberry buttercream. Her eyes opened wide as she heard footsteps coming down the stairs. “Okay, shh, he’s coming!”

Annika just continued to giggle, and returned to frosting the 500 wedding cupcakes. She wiggled her eyebrows at Eva, who blushed and squared her shoulders as Armie’s tall frame filled the kitchen doorway. He smiled at both of them, before clearing his throat.

“Hi. Ladies. Uh… I was told to come down for some food.” He winked at Eva, and walked towards the metal work table. “Smells good in here.” He sat on a stool in the kitchen, and looked up at Eva expectantly, like a puppy begging at the dinner table.

With one look at those twinkling blue eyes, Eva could literally _feel_ her heart melting. “Uh, yes, I have some bread I just baked fresh this morning. And some chicken noodle soup. It’s not much, but it’s the type of stuff we eat around here.”

He smiled again, his teeth sparkling, and Eva felt like she couldn’t blink. “Bread and soup sound delightful. Thank you so much, you’ve been so kind. I just came in here, dripped all over your beautiful bakery, and most likely used up all the hot water upstairs, and now I’m eating your lunch?” He tsked, and shook his head. “You’re my savior, Eva Storm.”

Eva felt herself blush for the thousandth time, and turned to the stove. She ladled some chicken noodle soup into a bowl, and grabbed two fresh-baked rolls from the trays. Setting them in front of him, she turned quickly to pick up a spoon. “Here you are,” she noted, plunking a spoon into his bowl. “Enjoy!” She noticed Armie eyeing the soup hungrily before he picked up the spoon and dug in.

As he ate, Eva busied herself in the front of the store, helping customers. It was surprisingly busy for weather that made it seem like it was the end of the world. While she worked up front, boxing cupcakes, loaves of bread, and other delicious pastries, she kept sneaking glances at the beautiful stranger sitting her kitchen. She longed to sit down and chat with him, get to know more about him, but she had too many other things to take care of at the moment. Before she knew it, he had finished, stood up, and made his way to the front of the bakery.

“Well,” she commented. “Seems like the storm’s cleared. Let me give you an umbrella, just in case you’re caught in a mini hurricane again in the near future. It’s definitely going to happen,” she laughed. Eva grabbed an umbrella out of the closet in the back, and handed it to him. She jogged back to the display case and put a chocolate croissant in a small parchment bag. “Here, for the road.”

He took it from her, and their fingers brushed as she released the umbrella. She focused on her breathing, and tried not to let on that this man had such an effect over her. _Oh my God, Eve, stop being so dramatic, you’re not in a romance novel._ Because she was looking down at her feet, she didn’t notice the shadow pass over his eyes when they touched.

“Well… thank you again so much, you’ve been too kind. I’ll return the umbrella the next time I come in.” His voice rumbled, and Eva could feel Annika staring at the back of her head. “I’ll definitely stop by when I get a break from filming.”

“Oh. That would be lovely,” she managed to force out. “Don’t be a stranger,” she joked, winking at him. _What. Are. You. Doing._ She extended her hand for a farewell handshake, and he looked at it before leaning down slowly.

“No, none of that. I’m a hugger,” he chuckled, bending down slightly (at 5’11” there wasn’t much of a height difference) and wrapping one arm around her. “Thank you, again, Eva. For the shower, and food, and fabulous croissant.” With one more twinkling smile, he was gone.


	3. Chapter Three

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eva and her best friends have a sleepover. Armie returns... with an unpleasant surprise.

Eva tossed a bag of popcorn into the microwave, and returned to the couch to snuggle between her two best friends, Karoline and Kandace.

“Sooooo,” prodded Kandace, “tell me all about this mysterious stranger that came into your bakery… _soaking wet.”_ She winked, and laughed as Eva rolled her eyes.

“Yesyesyes,” Karoline groaned, curling her legs under her as she sat on the couch. “Tell us all about the faaaamous celebrity who haphazardly wandered into your bakery. Who was it again? Johnny Depp? Brad Pitt? Benedict Cumberbatch?”

A week had passed since Armie Hammer had waltzed into _Sinfully Sweet,_ and both of Eva’s best friends had their doubts about the validity of her story. She’d called them both from the bakery the second he had left, but none of their schedules had lined up until now. Karoline ran a small pet boarding facility in Everett, almost an hour’s drive north of Eva, and Kandace was busy studying for her master’s degree in public health at Western Washington University. Now, the three of them were all cuddled up on Eva’s small futon in her apartment above the bakery.

“Guys, I’m not lying about this! Armie Hammer was here, in this very building! He came in to escape the rain, so I let him use my shower and fed him some soup. Nothing fancy happened.” Eva sipped at her very large glass of wine, and shrugged. “I honestly don’t think he’ll stop in here again. I mean, he was gorgeous and all, but I don’t think he would come back to Seattle just to visit.”

“Hold on.” Kandace whipped out her phone and immediately began Googling something. “I just wanna check something.”

“Eva, I wish you would get a phone. Imagine all the possibilities! We would actually be able to text each other! And you could Google stuff,” Karoline whined.

“Guys… you know why I can’t get a phone. Do you know how easily traceable cell phones are?” Eva frowned, and began scrolling through Netflix.  “I can’t move again.”

“They won’t find you! What if I added you to my plan? The bill is in my name and everything.” Karoline slipped an arm around Eva. “I hate thinking about you out in the world without a phone. What if I got you a burner phone? Perps on SVU use them all the time.”

Eva’s mouth twitched in a small smile. “If it’ll make you feel better, then yes. A burner phone.”

“Yippee!” Karoline squealed and hugged Eva tightly. “Okay, let’s pick something to watch.”

“I got it!” Kandace interrupted, waving her phone in the air. “I found where Armie’s at. He’s filming something here. In Seattle. For the next 3 months.” She grinned. “Maybe he’ll stop by! The next time he does, take a picture so we have proof. You’ll have your burner phone.”

“Alright, alright. You’ll see. You’ll all see!” Eva chuckled as she continued scrolling through the hundreds of titles on Netflix. “How about ‘The Lone Ranger’? Suddenly I’m feeling like a Johnny Depp film.”

“Riiiighhttt, and it has nothing to do with the fact that Armie Hammer’s in it?” Karoline drawled. “Not that I’m complaining. I love Johnny Depp.”

“We know you do,” Eva and Kandace said at the same time. The microwave began beeping, and Eva jumped up to grab the popcorn. “Extra butter, my dears?”

Kandace rubbed her hands together in mock glee. “ _Is_ there any other way to eat popcorn?” The three of them giggled as Eva rejoined the other two girls on the couch, and they watched movies until the three of them fell asleep watching the sun rise.

At around 11 o’clock the next day, the three girls each awoke with painful cricks in their necks, but smiles on their faces. It was always such a joy to spend time with each other, and these times together were so special. After Eva bid farewell to her best friends, she began her daily routine of opening the bakery. It was a Sunday, so the doors of _Sinfully Sweet_ didn’t open until noon. She waltzed through the rest of her day, humming the theme song from “The Lone Ranger” and thinking about when Armie would stop in next.

The next few days passed by uneventfully. Eva went through her day-to-day, baking, frosting, kneading, whipping, folding, and performing any other verb that applies to delicious pastries. Occasionally, she would get the opportunity to daydream about the tall, sonorously voiced man who had scurried soggily into her bakery. Even Annika noticed.

“Oh my goodness, Eva! That’s the third time you’ve overbeaten the cream! Do you think we have a shortage of butter, because I can assure you that we do not!” Annika’s shrill voice broke into Eva’s thoughts. She’d been thinking about the way the steamy shower water had dripped down his sculpted body, and how his eyes had twinkled at her when he’d caught her staring.

“Shoot, sorry Annika! I didn’t mean to. Maybe you should take over the cream beating… that came out wrong.” Eva’s face turned bright red, and she buried her face in her apron. “I’m sorry, I’ve been so distracted lately, and I don’t know why!”

“I know why! It’s because you’re twitterpated!” Annika sang. She dumped the mixing bowl of cream – now turned butter – into the garbage can, poured a new batch of cream in, and started up the mixer. “You need to get your head on straight, we can’t afford to run out of all our ingredients!” she laughed. “Why don’t you go frost cupcakes? That’s almost impossible to mess up,” she winked, adding powdered sugar to the soft peaks of cream that were starting to form. “I’ll beat your cream for you… that also came out wrong. Goddammit, it’s contagious.”

Eva snorted, and began to turn towards the counter, when she heard a very familiar voice, one that she’d been fantasizing about for several days now.

“Did I hear someone say something about beating cream?” The smirk could be heard in the resonating voice that rumbled through Eva’s chest and down to her toes. She turned around, and saw none other than the lovely Armie Hammer standing in her bakery, as handsome and smiley as she remembered. She could feel her ears turning red as she pretended to busy herself with the marzipan candies on the cupcakes she was decorating.

“Perhaps. I’ve been a butterfingers lately, and Annika has had to double check my work.”

Armie crossed his arms and grinned. Eva felt herself swallow more slowly than she ever had before.

“I sincerely hope that you haven’t managed to botch those chocolate croissants I love so much. That one you gave me last time was orgasmic.” His cerulean eyes crinkled in another _irresistible_ smile, and he reached in his pocket for something.

“I don’t know,” she teased. “Why don’t you try them and tell me?” She pulled a freshly baked chocolate croissant off the rack behind her, and handed it to him. “Here. _Un pain au chocolat pour mon pain au chocolat._ ” She watched as he raised the croissant to his lips, and pause to stare at her.

“Did…” he began in a whisper. “Did you just… call me a chocolate croissant?”

Eva giggled. “Maybe. Stop asking silly questions and taste my croissant already!” She gasped as she’d realized what she’d said, and heard Annika snicker behind her. She crossed her fingers behind her back and hoped that he hadn’t heard what she’d said.

Armie didn’t appear to notice at all, because before she had finished her sentence, he had sunk his teeth into the pastry. His eyes rolled back as he sighed a deep, contented sigh. “Nope,” he managed to mumble with his mouth full of flakey, buttery goodness. “Didn’t botch these guys.” He finished the croissant in 4 bites, and dabbed his fingers on the napkin she handed him. “You are a baking goddess. So much better than my girlfriend… but don’t tell her I said that.”

Eva felt her heart crack just a little. He had a girlfriend. _That’s okay,_ she told herself. _That doesn’t mean you can’t be friends with him. Don’t touch, just look._ She took a breath to calm herself. “Thank you for the kind words. I’m sure your girlfriend is a talented culinary artist as well.”

“Nah. She makes only gluten-free or low carb or sugar free shit. The stuff literally tastes like cardboard. I feed it to the dog whenever she’s trying out new recipes. Your creations on the other hand…” He sighed again. “Amazing. Pure beauty.”

Eva beamed. “Thank you, Armie. It means a lot. Heh, actually there’s a place around here that does something like that. It’s awful, only makes gluten-free stuff. Everything there is moist and bland. And the owner is terrible too. She’s very snooty and British, and once added salt to my recipe while my back was turned. I was giving her a tour of the place, and she sabotaged my buttercream for this wedding. It was a disaster. Ugh, she’s just the worst person, that Erika. Well, you know what they say: if they bully you it’s because they’re just jealous.” Caught up in her passionate rambling, she hadn’t noticed Armie’s face change. When she had mentioned the name ‘Erika’, his brow furrowed just a little, but she had been too engaged in her rant to notice. As he opened his mouth to say something, the doorbell jingled. “Speak of the devil,” Eva muttered to herself.

A petite, thin, model-like woman walked into the bakery. Her mouth was pinched in a painfully straight line, and not one hair on her head was out of place, even with the furious wind blowing outside. Her eyes seemed to be made of ice, and her entire body reeked of controlled rage. The moment she spoke, Eva felt chills run down her spine.

“Darling,” the woman cooed. “I thought you were going out to get coffee. Why are you eating _her_ pastries? You said mine were irreplaceable!” She pouted like a five year old, and crossed her arms over her unnaturally full chest.

Armie looked at the woman, then at Eva. Then back to the woman. “Uh… Sweetheart, they _are_ irreplaceable.  You know how much I adore your cooking.”

Eva’s brain finally connected the two dots. The two dots that had been practically making out with each other before she’d realized what was happening. _Oh. My. God._

Armie smiled sheepishly before he slipped his arm around the woman. “Eva, this is my girlfriend. Erika, this is Eva.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "Un pain au chocolat pour mon pain au chocolat" - A chocolate croissant for my chocolate croissant


End file.
